Vatican names first black bishop to oversee Texas diocese

BEAUMONT (AP) - A cleric with a background in interracial cooperation was installed as the new head of the Diocese of Beaumont Friday evening - the first black to hold such a post in Texas.

Bishop Curtis J. Guillory became one of six black bishops heading dioceses in the United States. His appointment was announced last month by the Vatican.

"I am very grateful to have been appointed to such a wonderful and beautiful diocese," Guillory told a crowd of about 10,000 people who gathered at Lamar University's Montagne Center to celebrate mass and witness the installation.

"Our mission is to share the love of our Savior, Jesus Christ," said Guillory, who has been one of two auxiliary bishops for Houston Roman Catholics. "Where are others going to find God's love, if not from us?"

The 57-year-old clergyman is a native of Mallet, La., and grew up picking cotton as the oldest of 16 children in a struggling family of sharecroppers.

Before becoming a bishop, he served as a priest in Louisiana parishes after earning a master's of divinity degree from Catholic Theology Union in Chicago. He also holds an undergraduate degree from Divine Word College in Epworth, Iowa.

Guillory has said working with diverse ethnic groups has enriched his ministry.

In Houston, where he served for 12 years, Guillory's work has included acting as vicar to black Catholics in a diocese of more than a million Catholics.